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The Unique Way Travellers View the World:

Traveling stems from an innate curiosity to learn and explore. Travellers recognize the world is more vast than imaginable and feel a visceral need to get out there and see first hand all of its corners and edges. It is with this child-like curiosity for life and eyes of beautiful acceptance, that travellers view the world. If you are a traveller, then you have an authentic interest to try new things; in fact it makes you tick. It fills and satisfies the spaces inside you that are craving for spontaneity and novelty. Each new adventure or activity is an accomplishment of some sort, a boundary crossed, or a hurdle catapulted over and beyond your comfort zone.

As a traveller, you are mindful and present of how you interact with the world; you view your surroundings so intently that it is as if you are seeing everything for the first time. The stars earn a newfound awe and wonderment from the other side of the world, where outside of the urban jungle, open space ignites their glow; the power of the sun is now fully realized when you experience its harshness in drought ridden areas or in communities with poor access to shelter from it; and the ocean suddenly becomes magical and mesmerizing when you discover its depth.

You value diversity and are passionate about culture. You want to be immersed in a new culture and attempt to view the world as a local person might within that context. You may choose to forgo the taxi for a local bus, the tourist restaurant for a corner food stall and utensils for your hands. Sampling diverse foods is a favorite past time of the traveler and you will try just about anything, even if it is far to spicy for you. You jump at the chance to learn how to cook and prepare local cuisine, taking in the vibrant colors of unfamiliar produce, the aromas of new spices and oils, and watch the intricate skills of the cook’s hands.

Travellers are master observers and covert people watchers. This is part of your strategy to absorb some of the subtle nuances of a new culture, like a sponge soaking up every bit of sensory information you can. You take in the many competing aromas, the busy pattern on a local woman’s scarf, you trace the edges of foreign handwriting on a sign with your eyes, and listen to conversations in languages you cannot understand.

You learn through doing, through experience, through communication, and you intuitively understand that human connections span beyond sharing a common language. You uptake the gestures and body language of the locals you have been observing, testing out a ‘head wag’ or eccentrically talking with your hands. You confidently boast the words you’ve picked up in the local dialect, no matter how poorly the pronunciation; the combination of your broken language and this extra effort to culturally integrate are sure to make people smile – and you do make people smile – all over the world. You are willing to laugh at yourself and you share your smile with a natural ease and openness that is contagious. It is with this smile, that you can surpass language barriers and cultural differences. It projects your sincere willingness to learn and to try to understand another human’s lived experiences.

If you are a traveller, you interact with the world based on how you feel – and you my friend, you feel everything…deeply: the beauty of the earth, the subtle sadness in a strangers eyes, the tension in a conversation, the power of genuine human kindness, the synchronicity of the universe, or the weight of the world’s troubles. You are not afraid to take risks; you don’t care how you appear to others or what people think of you. You view the world, both the good and the bad, with appreciation; this is because through your experiences, you are acutely aware of how precious life is and the significance of living life in the moment, to it’s fullest.

Amazing article, very poetic but at the same time true, I feel identify with that traveler you describe. Thank you for share!

November 25, 2017 at 12:40 am

Rosemary said:

Could not agree more. Travel pushes you outside your comfort zone, allowing you to discover new aspects of yourself.

November 23, 2017 at 10:38 pm

Anisa said:

Very well said. I do think that travel gives you a unique perspective. Reminds me of that quote which I am going to screw up - something like those that do not travel only read one page.

November 23, 2017 at 3:54 am

Candy said:

Beautifully said. I really think everyone should travel! Traveling really opens the mind and heart. I really wish everyone in this world had the means to travel.

November 23, 2017 at 12:48 am

Samantha said:

Wow I couldn't agree more. This is so well written, you somehow captured all I feel about how traveling changed me .

November 23, 2017 at 12:11 am

Kris said:

Perfectly said! I know my worldview has been shaped thanks to my opportunity to travel a lot at a young age. I totally feel the ability to observe people closely to pick up on social norms in a new place. It's such a key skill to have when traveling overseas.

November 22, 2017 at 10:21 pm

Christina said:

Wow you hit the nail on the head with how I feel as a traveler and if not me, then my husband! What hit us the most was learning through experience and experience. We love learning during our travels and make it a point to always connect with locals to learnt their culture. This was a really nice and refreshing read - thank you for sharing!

November 22, 2017 at 9:55 pm

paroma said:

Totally agree! Traveling is a great way to cure ourselves of narrowmindedness and learn new cultures.

November 22, 2017 at 9:32 pm

paroma said:

Totally agree, and traveling is a great cure to remove bigotry and learn new cultures.

November 22, 2017 at 9:31 pm

Ivy said:

Great post, and written beautifully too. Couldnt agree more about traveling. It means all these things to me too :)

November 22, 2017 at 7:51 pm

Ezinne said:

I am definitely proud to be a traveler! I see the world differently.

November 22, 2017 at 6:36 pm

Marius said:

very well said Steph - and well written. thoroughly enjoyed reading this and agree completely.

June 17, 2017 at 4:47 am

thepinkbackpack.com said:

I couldn't agree more :)

July 12, 2016 at 12:07 pm

Nikita said:

Beautifully said! Travelling has definitely sharpened all these feelings for me, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I love the intensity of it all!